Friday roundup: Pretenders, Kid Rock, Kingston Trio

Plenty of tidbits to consider this Friday...

• We're not quite sure how an article ostensibly about the new country-flavored album from The Pretenders came to be titled "Chrissie Hynde has never heard of Sarah Palin," but this piece from MSNBC is still worth checking out.
  
  
• Word from the New York Times is Kid Rock has finally joined the 21st century and made his music available online via Rhapsody (lucky them). Now if AC/DC would just end their holdout...
  
  
• Nick Reynolds, a founding member of folk-rock pioneers The Kingston Trio, has died. The group's focus on guitars and harmonies inspired Bob Dylan, Joan Baez and the Beatles, among others. R.I.P.
  

Americana Music Conference and Festival

Americana fans are in for a treat (again) this September...

Slated for Wednesday, September 17 through Saturday, September 20, the 9th Annual Americana Festival and Conference will offer daily seminars, panels and networking opportunities at the Nashville Convention Center in Nashville, Tennessee. Each evening brings more than 80 Americana showcases to key venues throughout the city. Approximately 2,000 industry executives, artists and fans are expected this year.

This year's list of showcase artists is amazing. How about: Joan Baez, John Hiatt, Jim Lauderdale, Tift Merritt, Levon Helm, Steve Earle, James McMurtry, Gary Louris and Mark Olson (from the Jayhawks), Kathy Mattea, Reckless Kelly and on and on.

Also, on September 18 the 7th Annual Americana Music Association’s Honors and Awards Show will recognize John Hiatt with the Lifetime Achievement Award in Songwriting and Jason and the Scorchers with a Lifetime Achievement Award in Performance. The two-hour event will be broadcast live on XM Satellite Radio, and rebroadcast on Sirius Satellite Radio and BBC2 Radio.

Tickets are available through www.americanamusic.org, where you can also find more details about award nominees, showcases, prize packs, etc.